It is part of the Counter Insurgency (COIN) genre of games, asymmetrical warfare. It has also been promoted by various speakers over the years at the Connections UK Conference. More impressively it has been acknowledged as a respected and informed narrative on the dynamics of the conflict. The co-designers Brian Train and Volko Ruhnke alongside their keynote addresses at UK Connections 2018 gave de-construction insight to a military replay by active serving officers and governmental officials. So in the same vain that I "had to" get Advanced Squad Leader (ASL) because the 1st Royal Irish Commander Ivor Gardiner recommended it, this was a "bucket list" must for me! The hidden bonus is that it has "high" solitaire play (bots can run three of the sides) so there is no excuse in not getting it played over Xmas.
You Tube Videos explaining the game:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJnCTsej-0o
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=a+distant+plain
8 comments:
When you're wounded and left on Afghanistan's plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An' go to your Gawd like a soldier.
http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/poems_youngbrit.htm
Thanks! I hope you enjoy playing A Distant Plain. If you find the bots tiresome, it's just as interesting playing all four sides and pondering the options and implications of your actions... after all, if you are playing solo you're not doing it that competitively.
Brian Train
Thanks Ian I will dice with you as to see who plays the coalition ;)
Thanks Brian, I am honoured you popped by and thanks for the tip
Last night I "unboxed it" to the collective "Oooh" and "Ahhh's" of my local wargaming crowd .. they know they are in for a festive treat this Xmas ;)
I do have an eye on your other games too
The "Gaul" one in particular looks interesting ;)
Best Wishes
Mark
Hi Mark, I didn't design the Gaul one (Falling Sky) but I did design Colonial Twilight, on the Algerian War. Because it's cut down from four factions to two the tempo of the game is cranked way up, but you still get most of the charm of the COIN system of asymmetrical menus, methods and objectives. (But just for fun, I did make an experimental variant of it so you could play it with four, if four were all you had in the house to play a game!)
Brian
Thanks Brian,
I remember now (from the Connections 2018 audio), yes it was Volko and his son.
The Algerian War holds my peripheral attention as it is an Alistair Horne volume that is on my book self destined to be read one rainy winter!
I never seem just to play a game but rather use it to reasearch the period along side some "good books" ;)
Cheers
Mark
PS Brian:
I am digging into to the GMT videos for learning resources
Are there any major changes I should watch out for, the reprint literally seemed that, a reprint of the Second Edition without any rule changes
Your thoughts apreciated
Hi Mark, the second and third reprints have no changes in game play, just minor corrections and errata.
I think the colour of Coalition pieces may have changed between editions.
Third printing has a different set of bots by Vesa Arponen, that were originally run in C3i magazine.
Cheers Brian
Hope to get a festive AAR up on the blog with it ;)
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